East Side Mario’s

What’s with all the bad reviews?! I don’t really have any ammo whatsoever to bash this place. If anything, it’s not that original, hence the lack of the 5^th star.
But if you’re looking for no BS pasta, head over to this place! I thought the price and portion size was stellar, to the point where I felt they were being too generous. For $ 10.99 on Mondays, you get to choose what type of pasta you want accompanied with the sauce of your choice, endless soup or salad, free coffee or tea, AND a delicious serving of bread pudding. It could very near be the best deal in the Rochester/​Auburn area!
Service was fast and attentive. Food was great. Not exactly authentic Italian food, but if you’ve got the right mindset when you’re coming in (think American Italian a la Olive Garden), you’ll be pleased.

Our continued go to place. Always good. We chose to pick early dinners so seating is always fast and courteous. Food is always hot, great, and plentiful. Always can substitute a side for us pasta lovers as desired. Always hot and they can take special requests not featured on menu. Just ask. They are always accommodating

We went to East Side Mario’s on Black Friday after everywhere else being packed! We were seated quickly and the restaurant wasn’t packed, except for a couple tables! The service to get our drinks took about 10 minutes and we didn’t even see her for another 15 minutes after that when she brought us our drinks! They didn’t even take our food order till she came back 20 minutes later after dropping off drinks! Food didn’t come for an hour after ordering and we were the only ones (except for 3 other small tables) that were there. Good came out nicely and for the most part tasted good. The salads were ok, but they could of put more dressing than the little bit they put in there! This place is ok, but for the portions and quality you get, it was expensive! I would check around and see other Italian places and decide from there. They’re not bad, but they have some few possible fixing that they could do!

Food is great. Try the chicken Caesar pizzetta. It’s great.
The bocci ball drinks are too bad either. They are our go to late night quick food but not fast food.
It’s busy on weekends but the time waited it worth it.

Food was OK. Kids eat free Sundays. Portions are ok. My 10 year old orders off adult menu always. Servers are mostly bad. Ice tea is always horrible. Lots of menu options. Nothing really great. Burgers, pizza, bread OK. Salad is weak
Wished it was better.

Not busy but we waited an hour to get our food. Had to ask the waitress to fill our drinks three times before she did. There was a table beside us that was throwing food and the staff did not address them.
Would not recommend.

Haven’t been in years, love the atmosphere of a NY neighborhood. Service was good, prices were excellent. Had a lunch combo of wedding soup, caesar salad and a ½ of a Marboli wrap, all for $ 8.
Huge bowl of soup, salad was just ok wrap was tasty.

Great service and fantastic food. They also have buzztime trivia which is a plus. The calamari diablo is the way to go. The Manager mike is the man. Kat, Michelle, Emily, and Rose are a great bunch of bar tenders!

I am giving this 2 stars based on service and the lack of information given regarding happy hour. I have been here several times and have sat in all areas: bar, restaurant, and patio. In the past happy hour appetizers have been offered in all 3 areas. I have eaten them throughout the restaurant. Yesterday about 15 of us gathered on the patio for after work happy hour — something we have done several times over the years. We ordered appetizers and were told after the fact that the patio could not accommodate — and never has given happy hour prices on the patio. In addition our plates were never cleared from our table in over 2 hours. We finally placed all of them on an empty table nearby. There are many other restaurants in the area with great happy hours, and we will be going there in the future. We will not be back.

Chicken Parmesan Quattro to go is awesome. Usually order this every time. Comes with salad and pasta on the side. Their ranch is so good.

This is my family’s go-​to for a casual dinner out when we don’t feel like cooking. East Side serves great, tasty Italian food with an affordable price tag. My favorite dishes are the shrimp florentine, seafood linguini, and the Mulberry Connection (a combination of chicken parm, lasagna, and tortellini!)

This place is a shitastical mess. The waiter had no idea what they were serving, nice guy but not trained. Food was reheated crap, would have rather gone to Olive Garden. The bathrooms smelled horrible and the managers just shrugged their shoulders about it. They were too busy goofing around with the young female staff to give a shit. This place is a dump. Me and Randy are never going back to this joke of a restaurant.

Food was generic and bland. Not what I would call real Italian food. Seemed like everything was premade by a manufacturer and then reheated on site. The place is kid friendly I’ll say that and it always looks pretty crowded. But it’s not a restaurant that we will visit again. To boot, the waitress overcharged us by charging for a kids meal that was supposed to be free. I didn’t notice it until after we left.

Excellent service, outdoor patio and great lunch specials!
The waitress brought hot bread and waters for my two small children and I was we waited almost an hour for a friend. She was kind and attentive and filled up my coffee and water frequently, our entire visit. The pasta and salads for the adults were enjoyed as much as the kids pizza.

This place is good, and it’s not upscale Italian — but it’s Italian done right at a cheaper clip. Actually, it’s not even THAT Italian at all.
The tablecloths reminded me of a house party or a picnic, and nobody took themselves too seriously from what I could tell. The place has a homey-​type feel, where you don’t feel out of place.
The menu is quite large, from Italian classics like chicken parmesan to Bronx burgers to wraps to big salads. They have craft beer here, which is great even though it’s a liiiittle pricey for a pint — about $ 6.25. It is what it is, and I definitely recommend Norm’s Raggedy Ass if you can get it (and handle it!)
Even the appetizers are legit, from spinach artichoke to mussels to calimari to nachos. You could probably eat an appetizer as a meal if you aren’t THAT hungry.
The service is good and the portion sizes are generous from my experiences. If you’re with a group of people you may even want to mix and match, just to try different things.
Give this place a try for the sheer largeness of its menu, not to mention a lighter Italian-​style affair without upscale attire. Beats Olive Garden.

Let me start by saying that I used to go to the E.S.M in Sarnia Ontario and thought that was the only location until recently.
We were home in MI for a visit and meeting w/​some friends b4 a sporting event– they decided on E.S.M and made a reservation for a rather large party on Saturday night (2÷8÷14). My boyfriend and I were the last to arrive and told the others to go ahead and order as we didn’t want to hold up the group.
The server was not good plain and simple and she was snippy when my boyfriend asked what they had on tap. Others at the table asked numerous times for water refills and ketchup.
I ordered the Vinne’s Chicken Club $ 7.99 along w/​the garden salad $ 2.49 and would have loved more BBQ sauce and salad but she never returned to ask if I liked my food or needed anything and forget about flagging her down– she was m.i.a. My boyfriend ordered the seafood linguine and said it was good.
I have no interest in returning to this location– too many other/​better options

Eastside Mario’s has been around for a long time and they still deliver the same delicious food on every occasion. Everything here is delicious from the calamari to the pizza and burgers, you can’t go wrong with anything in the menu. They have great pasta dishes and But me being a pizza lover, I definitely go for Eastside Mario’s mild Italian style pizza any time I eat there.
The atmosphere here is family oriented and very warming. Nothing beats a good Italian meal at Eastside Mario’s. They have an awesome small hole in the wall bar at the front of the restaurant. They have endless peanuts in ton buckets that you can continue to refill until you can’t possibly eat another peanut, they’re definitely a great compliment to one of their select few draft beers.
Overall a great place that’s been around for a long time! Great food, beer and atmosphere.

I met my date at Club BFD, and we decided to forego the 40 minute wait and headed over here. Best plan! It definitely has great ambience and the service was excellent. We only ordered a couple of appetizers (Caprese (00ps, it’s labeled wrong in my oucs) flat bread, and chicken strips) and a couple of cocktails so I didn’t get to try any entrees from the menu, but from what I experienced here the other night has got me jonesing for more! The flat bread was really good! Great flavors, creamy cheese that melded everything together nicely! I think next time when friends suggest Club BFD, I’m going to counter with, lets go to Eastside Marios instead!

I hadn’t been to East Side Mario’s in over 10 years — my husband and I stumbled upon this place by misfortune (we forgot BFDs is closed on Mondays which is right next door) but we were SO glad we did!
The ambiance is amazing — the décor is unique and very inviting. We sat in the bar area which was really great too. You get unlimited peanuts and you can throw the shells on the floor! I don’t know why, but I’ve always loved that!
We ended up catching their Monday happy hour special — $ 3.75 for domestic pints & half off appetizers. We had the Caprese flatbread and two Screamin’ Pumpkin pints. Both delicious!
We ordered the Mulberry Street Connection (a small portion of the tortellini, lasagna & the chicken parm), and the Pomodoro Penne. Everything came out hot, cheesy and delicious! It came with a hot loaf of garlic bread and HUGE bowls of Italian Wedding soup. We were so stuffed from the flatbread and the soup that we barely ate our entrees. We both had leftovers for lunch the next day!
With both dinners, appetizers & beer our bill came to about $ 40. That’s a pretty great deal for the amount of food we got — it fed the both of us for two days!
We will be back :)

After we evacuated the mini van we made our way towards the Statue of Liberty proudly holding a bright red tomato. This should be your first clue not to expect a serious upscale dining experience. My youngest took note of Lady Liberty & her tomato as he chuckled to himself, it was then we knew we were in for a good time. The Inside was littered with cliché red & white checkered table cloths, Christmas lights and yet another Statue of Liberty.
Our party of 8 grabbed a long table in front of a wall with a door that looked like momma lived & made pasta on the other side, complete with street lights and an address. We settled in quickly as East Side Mario’s amazing staff tended to our dinning needs. We started with a round of drinks (served in those cheesy over washed red cups) and some of their calamari. The calamari was good. Deep fried (rings only), kinda greasy but hit the spot none the less. I got the Italian wedding soup, which was a lightly seasoned brodo (under seasoned broth) garnished with spinach, a few petite meatballs & Acini di pepe pasta (Italian for peppercorns). The soup was okay, I wasn’t impressed. I was impressed that a only a few people ordered a salad yet they brought us out a bowl of salad to pass around the table family style. The bread that was served with the soup & salad course was what really stuck out flavor wise thus far. A mini loaf of bread in the shape of a brick sprinkled with herbs, a shake or two of fresh grated cheese and a drizzle of fresh oil. The bread is what really got the taste buds ready for our entrees. I ordered the Veal Parmesan which came out with a fresh cold glass of Stella Artus (great beer). Before I could even grab my fork I was approached by the waiter to grate Parmesan cheese all over my food. I love it when a restaurant does this, it brings a smile to my face every time. The veal was lightly breaded, fried and smothered in the house tomato sauce & mozzarella cheese. Ironically the veal was served with a cute little American flag and a side of spaghetti big enough for my grandma to eat for days. The veal was fork tender and for the price ($ 14.99) was a great deal. My wife ordered the chicken Parmesan, which has got to be one of her favorite dishes to order when we go out to eat. The chicken was deep fried, but not greasy at all. It was tender, juicy and honestly tasted better then my veal. My boys ordered a lasagna ($ 8.99) off the lunch menu and shared it. I didn’t feel bad when they got full and didn’t finish much of their lasagna, because they filled up on soup, salad and bread. As full as we all were, we decided to try a couple desserts since we were celebrating a birthday. We ordered the tirimisu (store bought) & the bread pudding (homemade). We all grabbed a fork and dug in. The tirimisu was okay, I did enjoy that more then the bread pudding. We let the kids go play in the game room while us grownups let our dinner settle while having a great time conversing & exchanging laughs. We couldn’t help but sit back and watch how hard all the staff ran around helping each other with all their tables. We really enjoyed our dinner & I can understand why families like to come here and have dinner. We had a great experience and we will be back.